AG Forest Wood Processing Bioenergy Project

AG Forest Wood Processing Bioenergy Project

The project is located at 755 E State Hwy 20, Upper Lake in northwest Lake County (Figure 1). The 42.6-acre parcel is within Section 7, Township 15N, Range 10W, in the UGGS 7.5 Upper Lake Quadrant (Global Positioning System 39.15884, -122.89998). Adjacent peaks include Hogback Ridge to the east at 2600 feet and Sam Alley Ridge to the north at 2000 feet (Lake County, 2024). Using grant funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration, the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians (SVBPI) is proposing development of a woody biomass facility (facility) to process and manage forest wood from in and around Lake County. The proposed woody biomass project would generate renewable energy to power the facility which could potentially be available to downstream users in the future. The 42.6-acre parcel is owned by Lake County Watershed Protection District who has provided a long-term lease for the five acres to SVBPI. The project will construct the following non-permanent structures and equipment: 40’ wide x 60’ long (2,400 sf) X 24’ high membrane canopy structure; surface-mounted drainage system; driveway improvements with TrueGrid Permeable Pavers; a parking area; 27,625-gallon National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1142 rated water storage tank for fire suppression; and 2,500-gallon onsite water storage tank for dust control and domestic water. Operations would occur Monday through Friday between 7:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. The nearest residences are located less than 1,000 feet from the 5-acre site. Forest materials that are pre-processed into large wood chips in Kelseyville (Donahoo) would be hauled to the project site at 755 E State Highway 20 in Upper Lake (APN 004-010-04) for additional processing. Within the membrane canopy structure, the process system will consist of mechanical conveyors and systems to interconnect the biomass material as it moves through the process. The process is to achieve a size for the biomass that will allow for the best results in turning woody material into renewable syngas to run in the power generator for producing onsite microgrid power. As part of the syngas process, wood biomass is dropped into an airlock chamber through a solid slide gate (Attachment 5). On the bottom of the chamber is another slide gate that is opened once the first chamber is full. The wood then enters into the electrically heated sealed and insolated chamber that is thermally heat with no air to release the gas embedded in the biomass. No combustion of the wood occurs, rather the biomass is thermally decomposed into combustible gases (called Synthetic Gas "Syngas") and residual carbon mass called biochar. The syngas is filtered and cooled to make it ready for use in power generation and the biochar is then sent to a holding container. After processing, the finished biochar would be trucked back to Kelseyville to the main customer at the Red Hills site about once every two weeks. This project agrees with the California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan, January 2021, as well as with California’s 2022 Scoping Plan for Achieving Carbon Neutrality

Unincorporated Upperlake

Lake

Unincorporated

California Air Resources Board (ARB), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, North Central Region 2 (CDFW), California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Transportation, District 1 (DOT), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Energy Commission, California Highway Patrol (CHP), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Natural Resources Agency, California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Sacramento Region 5 (RWQCB), Central Valley Flood Protection Board, Department of Toxic Substances Control, Office of Historic Preservation, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Rights

Other (AG Forest Wood Processing Bioenergy Project)

Use Permit

Aesthetics, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Geology/Soils, Transportation, Tribal Cultural Resources